Hello!
I am a weightlifting & fitness coach from North Devon.
I've been working in sport and fitness for over 15 years and I have a Doctorate in Sport & Exercise Science. I specialise in coaching weightlifting and functional fitness, two areas of exercise I am especially passionate about after my own 'transformation story'.
I currently lead the weightlifting program at ARC Fitness in Bideford and I also assist World renowned weightlifting coach and Olympian Michaela Breeze.
Coaching Bio...
I started my career as an academic, researching skill acquisition, cognition and motor skill development in sports skills. I've since published numerous articles and presented at conferences on this subject, and it's incredibly rewarding to now apply this in-depth knowledge to inform my coaching and programming.
Like so many others, I initially found weightlifting though CrossFit. It was 'love at first lift' for me, and I quickly progressed in the sport as I became more technically proficient. I continued to do CrossFit, but my training soon became focused on weightlifting as I started working with a specialist coach every week. During this time, my numbers shot up as I gained a better understanding of the movements and kinematics involved in this unique sport.
In 2020, I moved into professional coaching. I began working at CrossFit North Devon on a regular basis, programming and running their barbell program alongside CrossFit classes. I enjoyed the challenge of working with such a diverse groups of lifters each week, helping them to develop their technique for the platform and of course for better and safer performances in CrossFit workouts!
Around this time, I also started working with Olympian and Commonwealth gold medalist, Michaela Breeze. My own lifting improved further with the help of her expertise. My snatch was just under 70kg and my clean and jerk was 92kg. I won the 81kg category in the Welsh Championships and enjoyed competing against some of the best in the country at local comps. More importantly, I was learning more about coaching weightlifters from Michaela and my classes were becoming hugely popular in the gym.
In 2021, I started coaching at a new gym in my hometown of Bideford, ARC Fitness. My old knee injuries were ever prevalent, stunting my progress as a lifter but this enabled me to invest more time and effort into my education as a coach. I now run the weightlifting program at ARC Fitness and I also periodically work for Michaela Breeze, coaching online sessions for her lifters.
In 2023 I made a return to the competitive scene. I competed in the European Masters WL Championships, picking up a bronze medal before taking a very close silver at the World Masters WL Championships. Since then, I have won a further two British Weightlifting Championships in 2023 and 2024.
Qualifications
Coaching:
British Weightlifting Level 2 Cert. Weightlifting Coach
CrossFit Level 1 Coach
Gym Instructor Level 2 Cert.
Hockey & Cricket Level 2 Cert. Coach
First Aid at Work Certificate
Academic:
PhD Sport & Exercise Science, University of Exeter (2015)
MSc Health & Sport Science, University of Exeter (2011)
BSc Sport & Exercise Science, University of Exeter (2010)
Associate Teaching Fellow of the Higher Education Academy
Level 1 Safeguarding & Protecting Children
Publications
Wood, G. Miles, C.A.L., et al., (2017) A randomized controlled trial of a group-based gaze training intervention for children with Developmental Coordination Disorder, PLos One, 12(2). DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0171782
Miles, C.A.L., et al., (2015). Quiet eye training aids the long-term learning of throwing and catching in children: Preliminary evidence for a predictive control strategy, European Journal of Sport Science, 17(1), DOI: 10.1080/17461391.2015.1122093
Miles, C.A.L., et al (2015). Quiet eye training facilitates visuomotor coordination in children with developmental coordination disorder, Research in Developmental Disabilities, 40:31-41, DOI: 10.1016/j.ridd.2015.01.005
Miles, C.A.L., et al (2014). Quiet eye training improves throw and catch performance in children, Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 15(5), DOI: 10.1016/j.psychsport.2014.04.009
Wilson, M.R., Miles, C.A.L., et al., (2012). Quiet Eye Distinguishes Children of High and Low Motor Coordination Abilities, Medicine in Sports and Exercise, 45(6), DOI: 10.1249/MSS.0b013e31828288f1
My Story: This is why I Coach...
In the space of a few years I had spiralled down from a talented hockey player and cricketer to a miserable, overweight academic! Thankfully, I found a path back to health and then ultimately, to fitness through weightlifting, and that's what led me to becoming a professional coach...
By the age of 23 I'd had my 4th knee surgery and was finally forced to 'retire' from hockey, which at that point was pretty much the sole focus of my life. I had graduated from university with a Bachelors and Masters degree, but I'd also developed an unhealthy taste for beer! Fortunately, I'd earned an opportunity to pursue my research interest in skill acquisition and motor skills through a PhD in Sport Science at the University of Exeter. With no hockey, this gave me the perfect excuse to throw myself whole-heartedly into my studies but unfortunately it also fed my unhealthy habits and their ever expanding affects!
Despite my health, I did well academically and a Post-Doctoral Fellowship at Liverpool Hope University followed. However things were not so rosy under the surface. Since leaving university I'd stopped all exercise, started eating all sorts of crap and I'd put on 30kg! I'd lost my confidence and my love for academic research soon followed down the pan. I also continued to drink just a bit too much, a bit too often. Miles from home, friends and family, I was completely miserable.
Seeing no other way out, I left my job and moved back to North Devon. I dragged myself around a few gyms in an epically unsuccessful bid to lose weight. It was only when I stumbled upon CrossFit did I discover the barbell and a way to get fit and actually have fun! This was the first time since putting down my hockey stick that I'd found an activity that I just couldn't wait to do every day. Despite my size, I was still relatively quick and strong, and with a brain trained to understand kinematics, I picked up the functional movements and particularly the weightlifting quickly.
In 2020 CrossFit North Devon offered me a coaching role and I've never looked back. I took on their weightlifting program and have been rewarded with full classes almost every week until the day I left! I just love watching the progress of my lifters and I get such a kick out of their successes. I moved to ARC Fitness in 2021, where I've started up an incredibly popular weightlifting program and I joined the coaching team of former Olympian and world class weightlifting coach, Michaela Breeze.
In 2023 I turned my focus to competing. I qualified for the European Masters Weightlifting Championships at the beginning of the year and unexpectedly won a European bronze medal in my first major competition. I then headed off to the World Masters in Poland. I suprised myself again, taking home World Silver medal, actually equalling the total of the champion, but taking 2nd as the American had a higher snatch score. I ended the year with a win at the BWL British Masters Championships and then in 2024 won the British Masters Weightlifting Championships too!
It took a few twists and turns to find my way again, but as I've grown and developed as a coach, I've learnt what this amazing sport can do for a person both physically and mentally. It helped me shift those extra kgs of weight and even taken me to the world stage, and representing GBR. I've honestly never been fitter, happier or healthier! I believe the sports of CrossFit and weightlifting can do for anyone what they have done for me, and I absolutely love sharing these training methodologies with everyone who walks into my classes.
